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the "news nation" is following where things regard right now with the fiscal cliff and there's hot rhetoric to go around. >> our members believe strongly that raising tax rates will hurt the economy. closing loopholes, especially on those who are wealthy, is a better way to raise this revenue. >> in order for us to raise the amount of revenue that's needed just by closing deductions and loopholes for high earners we'd have to, for example, eliminate or severely cap the char itible deduction. >> an obsession to raise taxes not going to solve the problem. what will solve the problem is doing something about the entitlements, taking on the wasteful spending in washington. >> and meantime, "the new york times" jonathan wiseman reports behind the scene republican leaders are considering the president's plan to extend middle class tax cuts now an address the debt and spending in the new year. here's republican senator tom coburn on "morning joe." >> actually, i would rather see the rates go up than the other way and greater chance to broaden the base in the future. >> do something, a down payment
the "news nation" is following where things regard right now with the fiscal cliff and there's hot rhetoric to go around. >> our members believe strongly that raising tax rates will hurt the economy. closing loopholes, especially on those who are wealthy, is a better way to raise this revenue. >> in order for us to raise the amount of revenue that's needed just by closing deductions and loopholes for high earners we'd have to, for example, eliminate or severely cap the...
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cliff had to be to put new revenues and raise the tax rates of the wealthiest americans. [ ♪ music ♪ ] >> cenk: so taking this case to the american people fighting strong, making his own case which he we've been asking him to do for four straight years. my reaction was this. >> flabbergasted. [ laughing ] >> cenk: what's your reaction. >> slightly flabbergasted because this is not how the president has worked before. he ran with a grassroots in 2008. we tried to recreate that, talked about the ground game in the campaign in 2012. he's taking a grassroots campaign to politics, which is what progressives have been begging him to do now for a while. it seems to be working. all the hash tags and all the my 2 k has tags has gotten up to 13,000 tweets per hour. not every one of them is, hey great idea, mr. president. a lot of them are coming from people who are conservatives saying whatever it is that they're saying. the point is he's in touch with the people. he's not living in a cocoon like he did in the first term. >> cenk: when they ask how would you spend that $200,000 that you wouldn
cliff had to be to put new revenues and raise the tax rates of the wealthiest americans. [ ♪ music ♪ ] >> cenk: so taking this case to the american people fighting strong, making his own case which he we've been asking him to do for four straight years. my reaction was this. >> flabbergasted. [ laughing ] >> cenk: what's your reaction. >> slightly flabbergasted because this is not how the president has worked before. he ran with a grassroots in 2008. we tried to...
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so with 29 days to go until the fiscal cliff, what would it take to get a deal? joining me now, men on opposite sides, grover norquist, president of americans for tax reform and robert reish, former secretary of labor for president bill clinton and the author of "beyond outrage." none of the three of us are beyond outrage, grover norquist, which is why i keep having you back. the situation it seems to me as an impartial observer here is that both sides have now made fairly ludicrous offers that they know the other side is never going to accept in a million years. that does beg the question, grover, why bother, given that both sides know where they need to move, why the games? >> well, it's not clear that both sides know. the week after the election, president obama was asked do you have to have the higher rates or could we have deductions and credits and he said he was open to negotiations. three weeks later, after thanksgiving, he shows up and all of a sudden there's a line in the sand on rates that had come out of nowhere, so the president seems to be moving th
so with 29 days to go until the fiscal cliff, what would it take to get a deal? joining me now, men on opposite sides, grover norquist, president of americans for tax reform and robert reish, former secretary of labor for president bill clinton and the author of "beyond outrage." none of the three of us are beyond outrage, grover norquist, which is why i keep having you back. the situation it seems to me as an impartial observer here is that both sides have now made fairly ludicrous...
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house in order without the tax rates going back up. >> nobody wants to go over the cliff. that's why the day after the election i tried to speed this process up by making the concession to put revenues on the table. and it is unfortunate that the white house spent three weeks doing basically nothing. >> now, the republican counterproposal that we just heard about still includes those bush era tax cuts staying in place for everybody, which president obama has called a nonstarter. so what if we raised taxes a little bit? still be much lower than what americans paid just a generation ago. in 1980, the wealthiest americans paid a marginal tax rate of 70% of their income to uncle sam. now, tax reform under president reagan reduced that rate to 50% and in 1981, and closer to current levels in 1986. today, president obama wants to let the bush era tax cuts expire for wealthy americans only, taking up their marginal federal tax rate from 36% to 39.6%. we're talking about a 3.6 percentage point uptick for households making more than $250,000 a year, only on every dollar they make a
house in order without the tax rates going back up. >> nobody wants to go over the cliff. that's why the day after the election i tried to speed this process up by making the concession to put revenues on the table. and it is unfortunate that the white house spent three weeks doing basically nothing. >> now, the republican counterproposal that we just heard about still includes those bush era tax cuts staying in place for everybody, which president obama has called a nonstarter. so...
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the president took to twitter today to answer questions about the fiscal cliff. one person asked whether deductions for homeowners are at risk to which the president responded, breaks for middle class important for families and economy. if top rates don't go up, danger that middle class deductions get hit. signed "bo." yesterday house speaker john boehner said this on fox news. >> listen, nobody want to go over the cliff. that's why the day after the election i tried to speed this process up by making a concession to put revenues on the table. it's unfortunate that the white house has spent three weeks doing basically nothing. you know, the president's idea of a negotiation is, roll over and do what i ask. >> and on "meet the press" yesterday grover tried to change america's mind about who to blame if we do go off the cliff. >> tea party 2 is going to dwarf tea party one if obama pushes us off the cliff. let's not pretend who's pushing us offer the cliff. >> but continuing to insist that the president does have the better argument. >> at the end of the day, presi
the president took to twitter today to answer questions about the fiscal cliff. one person asked whether deductions for homeowners are at risk to which the president responded, breaks for middle class important for families and economy. if top rates don't go up, danger that middle class deductions get hit. signed "bo." yesterday house speaker john boehner said this on fox news. >> listen, nobody want to go over the cliff. that's why the day after the election i tried to speed...
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cliff, they really believe that republicans will get the blame. so that's why maybe they are sort of running out the clock a little bit making it harder for republicans to negotiate more at the end of the day. >> so just to make it clear, because the republican plan does not include a tax increase, a tax increase on the wealthy, the president isn't going to deal? he's not going to get on the phone with john boehner, he's not going to do anything? >> reporter: well, it's hard to imagine at some point that they are not going to get on the phone, that they are not going to have real negotiations. but right now, they are not. and so that's why the house republican leadership says they are just sending their members home. and they also say, the speaker didn't mention it here but one thing they want their members to do back in their districts is to try to galvanize the public's support for their position that the president is trying to do for his position as he campaigns on that. but you're exactly right and it's important to underscore this over and ov
cliff, they really believe that republicans will get the blame. so that's why maybe they are sort of running out the clock a little bit making it harder for republicans to negotiate more at the end of the day. >> so just to make it clear, because the republican plan does not include a tax increase, a tax increase on the wealthy, the president isn't going to deal? he's not going to get on the phone with john boehner, he's not going to do anything? >> reporter: well, it's hard to...
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look, i think it hurts everybody politically if we go over the fiscal cliff. republicans will pay a larger price. it's about making sure they don't drive themselves off a middle class cliff by digging their heels into lower rates. actual hadly have lower rates for the wealthy than the wealt >> tripp, you work for a group -- you're saying, hey, we stand for principle but you're not there to win elections. you're there to win policy fights. >> right. >> the fact is, if republicans could be -- some concern is republicans pulling away from the vote. >> hopefully good policy makes good politics. in this case, if we can see the tax issue, that's not going to fix the problem. the drivers of the debt is spending but also is is entitlement and boehner punting, capitulated to the white house -- >> capitulation on the white house doesn't even -- >> that's a pretty -- >> well, we're all going to put our heads in the sand and say that entitlement are not the drivers of the deficit. >> you don't think he put enough detail on the entitlements? >> no. >> we'll ask him that wh
look, i think it hurts everybody politically if we go over the fiscal cliff. republicans will pay a larger price. it's about making sure they don't drive themselves off a middle class cliff by digging their heels into lower rates. actual hadly have lower rates for the wealthy than the wealt >> tripp, you work for a group -- you're saying, hey, we stand for principle but you're not there to win elections. you're there to win policy fights. >> right. >> the fact is, if...
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cliff and also they feel like think eve kind of got republicans in a corner because these income tax rates are set to increase in everyone at the end of the year and kind of hold that over their heads. now, at the same time, obviously, the issue here continuing to be tax rates and the white house really wants to deal with that. increase tax rates on the wealthy and then they want to deal with tax reform, entitlement reform later. somehow maybe link them but deal with that later and so they're really drawing this line in the sand as you heard timothy geithner say that the tax rates need to go up for wealthy americans. >> there's a strategy here. so, anna, republican strategist, why aren't republicans offering their own plan in return? isn't that how you negotiate? >> i think first they wanted to see what the president puts on the table. they have seen it. they don't like it. it doesn't have cuts in spending and entitlement reform. they want that. but i think what we're watching right now and see it for the next few days play out, a lot of posturing. this is a game of chicken. who's go
cliff and also they feel like think eve kind of got republicans in a corner because these income tax rates are set to increase in everyone at the end of the year and kind of hold that over their heads. now, at the same time, obviously, the issue here continuing to be tax rates and the white house really wants to deal with that. increase tax rates on the wealthy and then they want to deal with tax reform, entitlement reform later. somehow maybe link them but deal with that later and so they're...
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he's got to get it done -- >> he's got to get it done -- >> you go off that fiscal cliff you're part of the chaos and you're in the midst of the chaos. >> however he gets there, he will get there. >> okay captain ahab. >> thank you, michael and steven. . i'm where michael tonight. drives people crazy. a broken clock is right twice a day. up next, the latest from sarah palin who is never, ever right! she says the president is turning the nation commie. wait until you hear her. she's still at it and totally irrelevant. this is "hardball," the place for politics. two years ago, the people of bp made a commitment to the gulf. bp has paid over twenty-three billion dollars to help those affected and to cover cleanup costs. today, the beaches and gulf are open, and many areas are reporting their best tourism seasons in years. and bp's also committed to america. we support nearly 250,000 jobs and invest more here than anywhere else. we're working to fuel america for generations to come. our commitment has never been stronger. look this isn't my first christmas. these deals all seem great at
he's got to get it done -- >> he's got to get it done -- >> you go off that fiscal cliff you're part of the chaos and you're in the midst of the chaos. >> however he gets there, he will get there. >> okay captain ahab. >> thank you, michael and steven. . i'm where michael tonight. drives people crazy. a broken clock is right twice a day. up next, the latest from sarah palin who is never, ever right! she says the president is turning the nation commie. wait until...
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he's got to get it done -- >> he's got to get it done -- >> you go off that fiscal cliff, you're part of the chaos and you're in the midst of the chaos. >> however he gets there, he will get there. >> okay, captain ahab. thank you, michael steele and steven mcmahon. i'm with michael tonight. drives people crazy. a broken clock is right twice a day. >>> up next, the latest from sarah palin who is never, ever right! she says the president is turning the nation commie. wait until you hear her. she's still at it and totally irrelevant. this is "hardball," the place for politics. [ thunder crashes] [ female announcer ] some people like to pretend a flood could never happen to them. and that their homeowners insurance protects them. [ thunder crashes ] it doesn't. stop pretending. only flood insurance covers floods. ♪ visit floodsmart.gov/pretend to learn your risk. >>> back to "hardball." in the "sideshow," a protest takes a turn for the better. it started out when ohio senator rob portman took to a stage at a fix the debt conference in washington today. a group of protesters pre-empted
he's got to get it done -- >> he's got to get it done -- >> you go off that fiscal cliff, you're part of the chaos and you're in the midst of the chaos. >> however he gets there, he will get there. >> okay, captain ahab. thank you, michael steele and steven mcmahon. i'm with michael tonight. drives people crazy. a broken clock is right twice a day. >>> up next, the latest from sarah palin who is never, ever right! she says the president is turning the nation...
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he's got to get it done -- >> he's got to get it done -- >> you go off that fiscal cliff, you're part of the chaos and you're in the midst of the chaos. >> however he gets there, he will get there. >> okay, captain ahab. thank you, michael steele and steven mcmahon. i'm with michael tonight. drives people crazy. a broken clock is right twice a day. >>> up next, the latest from sarah palin who is never, ever right! she says the president is turning the nation commie. wait until you hear her. she's still at it and totally irrelevant. this is "hardball," the place for politics. meet the 5-passenger ford c-max hybrid. when you're carrying a lot of weight, c-max has a nice little trait, you see, c-max helps you load your freight, with its foot-activated lift gate. but that's not all you'll see, cause c-max also beats prius v, with better mpg. say hi to the all-new 47 combined mpg c-max hybrid. this reduced sodium soup says it may help lower cholesterol, how does it work? you just have to eat it as part of your heart healthy diet. step 1. eat the soup. all those veggies and beans, that's wh
he's got to get it done -- >> he's got to get it done -- >> you go off that fiscal cliff, you're part of the chaos and you're in the midst of the chaos. >> however he gets there, he will get there. >> okay, captain ahab. thank you, michael steele and steven mcmahon. i'm with michael tonight. drives people crazy. a broken clock is right twice a day. >>> up next, the latest from sarah palin who is never, ever right! she says the president is turning the nation...
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turn to the fiscal cliff, i know you don't want to get clinical or partisan, or even talk about this ridiculous phrase "fiscal cliff," just in your dealings with the financial issues for the last 30 or 40 years, what is your view about taxation, generally. doesn't america suffer when taxes are slightly higher in terms of economic prosperity? or is that just a bit of a myth? >> well, i think there are a lot of theories running around out there. and i have the formal education, and finance degree so i studied economics like a lot of us did. i was formally taught, the proper way is that way. that seems to be the direction of the obama administration, the idea to raise taxes. and the government control the reinvestment interest the economy. really, there is not much evidence that that has worked. it didn't work under obama or bush, even an argument it didn't work under fdr, which is where it came from. that probably world war ii bailed us out of the economic slump, probably called the great depression, rather than that. i am a sophisticated guy, i don't have a lot of sophisticated looks
turn to the fiscal cliff, i know you don't want to get clinical or partisan, or even talk about this ridiculous phrase "fiscal cliff," just in your dealings with the financial issues for the last 30 or 40 years, what is your view about taxation, generally. doesn't america suffer when taxes are slightly higher in terms of economic prosperity? or is that just a bit of a myth? >> well, i think there are a lot of theories running around out there. and i have the formal education,...
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. >> of course all of this negotiation around the fiscal cliff, the president actually indicated today that he might be president-electable. he says he's not necessarily looking for income tax rates as high as they were under president clinton. secretary geithner is going to meet with congressional leaders tomorrow. do you think they will demonstrating some wiggle room, as well? >> i personally don't think it's that big of a banner sign. if there was actually a movement toward a deal, i think you'd see president obama meeting with these leaders in congress as opposed to cabinet aids. i'm hearing democrats still pressing the case. they're still making the argument that they want to raise taxes on that small percentage of americans. the white house has not put forth any specifics. depending how the president secretary goes, there is miles of space in between the two sides on this one. >> all right. one of my favorite reporters juana summers with politico. thank you for joining us. >> up next, it has several layers. the story on the outside is far different than the inside. yes, as far as
. >> of course all of this negotiation around the fiscal cliff, the president actually indicated today that he might be president-electable. he says he's not necessarily looking for income tax rates as high as they were under president clinton. secretary geithner is going to meet with congressional leaders tomorrow. do you think they will demonstrating some wiggle room, as well? >> i personally don't think it's that big of a banner sign. if there was actually a movement toward a...
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tonight's question, can both parties reach an agreement on the fiscal cliff before the end of the year? text a for yes, text b for no. you can go to our blog and leave a comment. we encourage that. we'll bring results later on in the show. >>> coming up, more of my interview with nancy pelosi. and the republicans so-called fiscomisal stay tuned. new prilosec otc wildberry is the same frequent heartburn treatment as prilosec otc. now with a fancy coating that gives you a burst of wildberry flavor. now why make a flavored heartburn pill? because this is america. and we don't just make things you want, we make things you didn't even know you wanted. like a spoon fork. spray cheese. and jeans made out of sweatpants. so grab yourself some new prilosec otc wildberry. [ male announcer ] one pill each morning. 24 hours. zero heartburn. satisfaction guaranteed or your money back. >>> elizabeth warren is close to locking up a spot on the banking committee. sherrod brown of ohio on what it means for consumers. >>> and later senator john kerry takes on republicans for voting down a treaty to prote
tonight's question, can both parties reach an agreement on the fiscal cliff before the end of the year? text a for yes, text b for no. you can go to our blog and leave a comment. we encourage that. we'll bring results later on in the show. >>> coming up, more of my interview with nancy pelosi. and the republicans so-called fiscomisal stay tuned. new prilosec otc wildberry is the same frequent heartburn treatment as prilosec otc. now with a fancy coating that gives you a burst of...
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tonight's question, can both parties reach an agreement on the fiscal cliff before the end of the year? text a for yes, text b for no. you can go to our blog and leave a comment. we encourage that. we'll bring results later on in the show. >>> coming up, more of my interview with nancy pelosi. and the republicans so-called fiscal cliff compromise. stay tuned. having you ship my gifts couldn't be easier. well, having a ton of locations doesn't hurt. and a santa to boot! [ chuckles ] right, baby. oh, sir. that is a customer. oh...sorry about that. [ male announcer ] break from the holiday stress. fedex office. [ male announcer ] break from the holiday stress. try running four.ning a restaurant is hard, fortunately we've got ink. it gives us 5x the rewards on our internet, phone charges and cable, plus at office supply stores. rewards we put right back into our business. this is the only thing we've ever wanted to do and ink helps us do it. make your mark with ink from chase. >>> elizabeth warren is close to locking up a spot on the banking committee. sherrod brown of ohio on what it mean
tonight's question, can both parties reach an agreement on the fiscal cliff before the end of the year? text a for yes, text b for no. you can go to our blog and leave a comment. we encourage that. we'll bring results later on in the show. >>> coming up, more of my interview with nancy pelosi. and the republicans so-called fiscal cliff compromise. stay tuned. having you ship my gifts couldn't be easier. well, having a ton of locations doesn't hurt. and a santa to boot! [ chuckles ]...
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he said "republicans are seriously considering a doomsday plan if fiscal cliff talks collapse entirely. it would be quite simple. house republicans would allow a vote on extending the bush middle class tax cuts. that bill already passed in august in the senate. and offer the president nothing more. no extension to the debt ceiling, nothing on unemployment, nothing on loopholes. congress would recess for the holidays and the president would face a big battle early in the year over the debt ceiling. ." two republican officials tell me this is becoming the most likely scenario. "the new york times" added more detail including this amazing quote from rep michael c. burgess of texas. "there's always better ground, but we have to get there." in this case the better ground is exchanging the threat of a congressionally induced recession for the threat of a congressionally induced global financial crisis combined with recession. that, that is your better ground? that's a big plan? it's not -- it's not better ground for the economy. and, frankly, i find it difficult to see how it's better politi
he said "republicans are seriously considering a doomsday plan if fiscal cliff talks collapse entirely. it would be quite simple. house republicans would allow a vote on extending the bush middle class tax cuts. that bill already passed in august in the senate. and offer the president nothing more. no extension to the debt ceiling, nothing on unemployment, nothing on loopholes. congress would recess for the holidays and the president would face a big battle early in the year over the debt...
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cliff unless both sides agree to raise rates on the wealthiest. that means raise tax rates for top earners. the reason that this is news is because there's been discussion publicly that perhaps they could find a rev new agreement where it would just involve capping deductions or maybe they could get to revenue just through tax reform, and with this piece of detail from that phone call yesterday, it would seem that the democrats, the president personally, is drawing a line saying those other ways are not enough. his campaign message that the top earners have to pay more, he is sticking to that line many these negotiations. >> jess, do we know how the republicans responded to this red line? >> well, speaker boehner was frustrated, wrovl, and came out with -- in his press conference today basically accusing the president of not leading on the issue. both sides are calling for the white house to come forward with spending cuts first, tell us where you are going to cut spending, before we, the republicans, will say whether we'll go along with you on ta
cliff unless both sides agree to raise rates on the wealthiest. that means raise tax rates for top earners. the reason that this is news is because there's been discussion publicly that perhaps they could find a rev new agreement where it would just involve capping deductions or maybe they could get to revenue just through tax reform, and with this piece of detail from that phone call yesterday, it would seem that the democrats, the president personally, is drawing a line saying those other...
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so until the republicans agree to those clinton-era rates, we are going to go off the fiscal cliff. >> you know, it's interesting, ari, you'll remember this because you were the white house press secretary in 2001 and 2003 when those bush-era tax rates were approved basically by republicans, very few democrats voted to approve those bush-era tax cuts. so why not do what the republican congressman from oklahoma says, what paul just said, go ahead, declare victory. say, look, all these democrats are now on board, they support for 98% of the american people the bush-era tax rates for a long time to come, declare victory and move on. >> well, number one, wolf, actually those tax cuts were bipartisan. 12 senators -- democratic senators voted for them, a good number. more than 60 senators voted for the bush tax cuts across the board. number two, let me surprise you with this, i don't agree by going over the fiscal cliff, but i do agree that the smart move for the americans to make they don't have leverage on the taxes. the payroll tax cut about to expire and it did expire, republicans tucke
so until the republicans agree to those clinton-era rates, we are going to go off the fiscal cliff. >> you know, it's interesting, ari, you'll remember this because you were the white house press secretary in 2001 and 2003 when those bush-era tax rates were approved basically by republicans, very few democrats voted to approve those bush-era tax cuts. so why not do what the republican congressman from oklahoma says, what paul just said, go ahead, declare victory. say, look, all these...
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that's your idea -- >> mike -- >> away from a fiscal cliff? >> congresswoman, i am a financial illiterate, can you explain to me how you have all encompassing tax reform without taking a look at tax rates? >> well, we have. we believe that we need tax reform. we'd like to look at tax rates, we'd like to look at the loopholes, the tax credits. we want a simpler, less costly tax code for america. that's important for middle class families, important for our economy. that is what's going to help get this economy growing again. but we also -- it also republicans believe it has to include the spending. and the way congress has operated in the past, you know, yeah, we'll increase revenue, but then there's never the protections, never the tough decisions to actually cut the spending, reduce the debt, and that has to be a part of this one. >> fair enough. arianna? >> congresswoman, in your thanksgiving message, twice you emphasize the need for jobs, the need for growth, and then you mentioned the deficit. what do you think we should be doing right now
that's your idea -- >> mike -- >> away from a fiscal cliff? >> congresswoman, i am a financial illiterate, can you explain to me how you have all encompassing tax reform without taking a look at tax rates? >> well, we have. we believe that we need tax reform. we'd like to look at tax rates, we'd like to look at the loopholes, the tax credits. we want a simpler, less costly tax code for america. that's important for middle class families, important for our economy. that...